Okay, here’s marketing 101. Let’s say you have something crappy that won’t sell to the public. What do you do? Answer: Use the Star Wars angle. Let’s say you have a round ball of wood, a long black blob and a brown furry…something. Call them Darth Vader, Chewbacca and the Death Star. Now they’ll sell to geeks who have more income then they do common sense.

These designs by Benjamin Males are “The Singer, The Drummer and The Dreamer”. Huh? Who is who? The Singer has five keys and is “influenced by classical instruments such as the Violin…and is created from solid Cherry wood. It is made using 5 Axis CNCing, which enables a smooth spiral to be ‘carved’ into the cherry.” Whatever. The Drummer loops drum-beats, creating rhythm in the musical composition. Influenced by African drums such as the Djembe, the Drummer will also throw off a secondary percussive sound when you tap the flat section. Again whatever.

As far as originality, you won’t find any here. When they designed this Maxx Digital portable DVD player, they simply re-did the PSP for some reason I can’t fathom. Not that it’s not a good looking PSP. It is. It’s just a PSP, not a DVD player design. I just don’t like all my stuff to look like PSP’s, that’s all I’m saying.

The PDV-8500BLK features a nice 8.5-inch LCD widescreen, and will play videos in DVD, DVD+/-R, DVD+/-RW, CD, CD-R/RW, VCD and SVCD formats. It’s also got support for JPEG, MP3 and MPEG4 files via a built-in SD, MMS/MS card reader slot. Strangely it doesn’t play video games at all. And no UMD discs. It will cost you $120.

Sony Ericsson has won the honor of the greenest electronics company around. They finished on top of Greenpeace’s Greener Electronics Guide, going beyond Energy Star requirements. All of its models are PVC-free and they banned the most harmful chemicals from their phones since January 2008. It was really no competition, as the scores of others plummeted badly.

In fact, surprisingly, or perhaps not so surprising to some, Sony Ericsson was the only company that scored more than 5 out of 10 in the Greener Electronics Guide. The guide judges tech companies on recycling programs, use of harmful chemicals and energy waste. So who was at the bottom of the list? Microsoft and Nintendo, thanks to Microsoft’s very low score on climate and Nintendo’s Wii being an energy pig. There’s always next time if they clean up their act.

Creative’s ZEN X-Fi player is different and it appears to be targeted at Apple on both the hardware and software fronts, according to leaked information by epiZENter. The X-Fi changes the look of the original ZEN drastically, with an aluminum-and-chrome look that seems to be inspired by the iPhone.

This new ZEN features a nine-point directional pad to take advantage of integrated Wi-Fi. Users will be able to IM on Windows Live or Yahoo Messenger, typing without a touchscreen or a full QWERTY keyboard. Another feature of the device is that it will have access to a host computer’s own content so users can play it in another room. And an Internet-based media pool of some sort will give users access to some content at other Wi-Fi hotspots. No official release date yet, but word is it will be in July.

We’ve seen our share of concept cars, but Jorge Cross’s amphibious vehicle design for the year 2030 blows us away because it’s like a walk down memory lane thanks to it’s obvious retro sci-fi roots. It’s as beautiful as it is strange.

The three-wheeler actually has a large ball in front that rotates 90° to reveal a propeller or tire. Tire by land or propeller by water. The sleek chassis design was a study on the theories of hydrodynamics and how they work with a vehicle’s shape. Jorge Cross is a student at the University of Monterrey in Nuevo León, Mexico. Great job. We have to get these on the road soon. Not that many of us could afford one.

The Batpod is Batman’s motorcycle in the latest movie and it’s a head turner. But is it cool? While sweet looking in it’s way, it’s not exactly leaving us awestruck. It’s black, fat, and ready to go medieval on the Joker, but how does it turn with those thick tires?

The steering seems to be based on the thinner tire at the back. One thing is certain, Batman’s cape is going to get caught in those wheels. You can see more of the Batpod when Dark Knight is released on the 17th of July. I’m sure it will look more badass in the film.

Many a kid has played with their slot car race track and watched as their racer zipped through the curves and straightaways only to be dislodged and careen off the track. It never gets old even as we age. It’s just that when you grow up, you need a bigger track. And in this case 8 whole lanes of fun.

This thing is no joke either. It’s not some cheap plastic toy. Instead it’s quality made, going so far as to prevent power-supply faults and even car-derailing bumps, which leaves you free to enjoy the race. All you have to do is clear the necessary real estate and invite a bunch of friends over. It beats playing this slot car game.

You love roller coasters, but you hate the long lines. Plus you had to make a long drive just to get there. Well, here’s some good news for roller coaster enthusiasts. Evento’s BuzzBall is basically a one-man roller coaster with a seat inside that can spin and roll independently of the ball itself using a pair of electric motors.

You might think you need a hill, but it will work with or without a large hill. A wide open field or even a road will provide you with some adventure. Right now the BuzzBall is a prototype, but they seem pretty serious about bringing it to the masses.

What is it about shiny things that draws people like a moth to the flame? I have no idea. But I do know that if you buy these Fairy Office Lights for your co-worker and string them around his cubicle when he’s not looking, fun insues. He will have to endure Tinkerbell jokes and all sorts of things that imply that he’s light in the loafers. Before you know it, someone brings a fairy wand into it. Pure fun at others expense.

On the other hand if you’re a woman or a genuine fairy decorating your laptop with tiny blue stars no one is going to say much. The string is 36” long and is $12.95.

If you’re a fan of the classic arcade game arkanoid, then like me you’ve been waiting for it to hit the Wii. Until it does, you can at least play it on your Nintendo DS. And if you remember playing the classic NES version with the special paddle controller, then you know there’s no other way to play it.

Taito has made a limited number of these plug-in accessories for the DS, so you can up your high score. They’re available in white, black, pink and silver. Unfortunately they aren’t officially available in the US so you’ll have to find an importer. At only $26.90 each it’s well worth it..

Researchers at Tohoku University have reportedly figured out a way to “multiply the amount of data that can be stored on a DVD or CD by 9.” Apparently, it works by shaping the pits on a DVD’s surface like Vs, essentially allowing you to get more out of the disc. The problem is that existing DVD & CD players won’t recognize the media made in this way, and for some reason the process can’t be applied to Blu-ray Discs. Still pretty cool though.

The ICT Graphics Lab at USC has created a low-cost volumetric 3-D display that brings Princess Leia one step closer to begging Obi-Wan for help. The system projects high-speed video onto a rapidly spinning mirror. As the mirror turns, it reflects a different and accurate image to each potential viewer.

The rendering algorithm can recreate virtual and real scenes with correct occlusion, horizontal and vertical perspective, and shading. Close to 5,000 individual images are reflected every second within the surface area and create a real-space three-dimensional object. Video below.

Wall-E opens today and one reason for Wall-E mania is that he’s just so darn cute. Which is why this item, even though it’s likely craptastic, is worth getting. I mean you can’t have too many Wall-Es in your home right?

The device comes with four games and plugs directly into your TV only needing 4 x AA batteries. You might notice the A and B buttons on his side. It will cost you $19.99 to $29.99 depending on where you get it.

There may be a reason that older people who use canes don’t fish very often. Could be that it’s a pain in the ass to use both a walking stick and fishing pole at the same time.

Those with walking problems will be happy to now find both in one device. Though it might get them some strange looks when not fishing. It’s 35-inches tall, with a rubber foot and metal/plastic reel, and only $39.95. Obviously it could be more stylish.

Newer Technology, which recently released a more eco-friendly version of its Guardian MAXimus external storage solution, is back again with with a new Guardian MAXimus which revs up to 10,000RPM for faster data transfer rates. It is called the Guardian MAXimus 300GB 10,000RPM and you’ll find it pricing around $900.

The Guardian MAXimus 300GB 10,000RPM offers data transfer rates up to 100MB/sec, depending upon whether you are using the FireWire 800, FireWire 400 or USB 2.0 interface. It sports two 300GB Western Digital VelociRaptor hard drives in a RAID-1 mirror configuration.